Hooper - RANT

Don't blame the player, blame the poor tactics and formation.

I will defend the lad, he will improve, did Hearn not go 10/11 games without producing too much? Was Bogle an instant hit? Did LJL set the world on fire in his first few games? I don,t seem to recall any of them being superb to start with. Lets give him a chance, as playing as a lone striker in this awful hoofball period under Slade is going to take a while to get use to, I know I am struggling with it.
UTMM

Maybe they weren't an instant hit but they always looked like they were giving their all. LJL didn't convince all the fans even by the time he left but he was never accused of giving less than 100%

Hearn didn't score for several games but never looked crap, that's a bizarre comparison, and LJL for his faults is one of the hardest working players we've had in years.  Perhaps Laurens Ten Huevel would be  a better comparison.

I think it's the lack of any obvious attributes from the lad. I can't work out what type of striker he is. He doesn't get off the ground well so isn't a threat in the air and I haven't seen him use his body to shield the ball to hold it up so I can't see him as the lone target man. There was no work rate or pace to be seen last night so I don't think he's a Vardy type who will harass defenders. I didn't see any quality link up play with the wingers or midfielders, neither did I see any darting runs from him to get in behind.

Having said all that, Derby did have a very experienced back 4 with 3 internationals so it's unfair to fully judge him on last night, or even last Saturday on a day when nobody played well. Maybe when we can get Dembele and Sam Jones on form around him we'll see what he's all about. Hopefully this Saturday will be a fairer test for him.

Gotta give the lad a fair crack of the whip but he hasn't impressed me one bit.

I dare say him and Kelly as the attacking two last night was the most lethargic front line I've seen for GTFC and I've seen some excrement before too!

The long balls aren't helping anyone but the lack of interest shown by Kelly and Hooper was shocking. Cardwell, whilst produced absolutely nothing, at least tried to create something from nothing.

I don't like to look back too much but I can't help but wonder if the lad Brandon Robinson was worth a punt. He looked lively and, as a trialist eager to impress and earn a contract looked worth a short term contract.
No fault of Hoopers but he didn't get that chance, but without pre-season showings, a not-too-great history and handing him the No 9 shirt just days before the season begins...it's not going to end well, is my gut feeling.
Towns major failing for the last 15 years or so is failing to convert chances. Unless we get serious and get a like-for-like Bogle type striker in it will continue.

Hooper would probably do better playing off another striker as he doesn't seem to have the attributes to lead the line. Problem is that we're not set up to play in this way this season, which makes the signing all the stranger!

Brandon Robinson looked more of an LJL-alike in terms of effort so he might well have been worth a punt. I can only imagine that Slade had somebody else in his sights at the time but that move fell through.

It is unfair to compare Hooper to when Hearn joined us.  Hearn always looked lively, dangerous and worked hard in his first 10 games.He had a good attitude and tried his best.

Hearn was unlucky not to score on several occasions in his first 10 games. It was clearly a matter of time before the goals were going to come frequently.  (As they did).

You've gotta be fair to the lad. He hasn't had a full pre-season with his team mates, and whilst Vernon is out he's probably being asked to do his role, which, it seems, is not where his attributes lie.